DETAILS: Yangtze Cruising

GETTING THERE: We took the daily nonstop United Airlines flight from Dulles to Beijing. Web fares start at about $850 round trip for October departures. Flights on other airlines, which require a connection, start from about $900.

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From Beijing, the two-hour flight to Yichang costs about $160 to $200 one way on Air China or Hainan Airlines. (In China, one-way tickets are typically half the cost of round-trip.) In general, it's cheaper to book Chinese domestic air trips once you're in the country, but it's wise to book the Yichang flight well in advance, since there are only one or two nonstops each day.

Our cruise line sent a driver and English-speaking guide to pick us up at the Yichang airport and another team delivered us to Chongqing Airport.

Americans must have Chinese visas, which can be obtained from the Visa Section of the Chinese Embassy at 2201 Wisconsin Ave. NW, Suite 110. The fee is $100. Details: http://www.china-embassy.org. Passports must have at least six months of remaining validity.

CRUISING: The best times to cruise the Yangtze are in the spring and fall, when the weather is cool and comfortable. The river valley can be broiling in the summer. Some cruise lines don't operate in the winter.

Upstream cruises tend to take longer and therefore are less popular -- but they're also often cheaper and less crowded.

We traveled with Orient Royal ( http://www.orientroyalcruise.com), which gave us a 10 percent discount for booking online. The only hitch was that, because of Chinese banking regulations, we couldn't pay by credit card and had to wire the cash from a bank. Our four-night cruise upstream cost $792 per person, which included meals, shore excursions and airport transfers. Once on board, we decided to spend an extra $100 each to upgrade from a bottom-level cabin to one on the fourth floor with nicer windows and better views.

Other lines offering Yangtze cruises include Victoria ( http://www.victoriacruises.com) and China Regal ( http://www.chinaregalcruises.com). Viking ( http://www.vikingrivercruises.com) claims to operate the most luxurious ships on the river, but its cruises are open only to travelers taking its package land tours.

INFORMATION: China National Tourist Office, http://www.cnto.org. -- M.B.S.